To be very honest, although I do not regret reading it in the least, I am rather disappointed with Slaughter-House Five. I admit I had high expectations for Slaughter-House Five because of the things I had heard about Kurt Vonnegut and the book itself. I also felt like I needed a break from the several dystopian texts we had read: 1994 and Brave New World. Although I thoroughly enjoyed both and each got me thinking, it was a lot to process. My father, an avid historian, had talked about the bombing of Dresden on several occasions as he studied both history and political science in university. I hadn't understood the big picture and I am usually quite interested in the history of the two world wars.
Having that said, I was not prepared - in the least - for the non-linear way this book is written. At first I marveled at the ingenuity of it all, but my enthusiasm slowly died as it became increasingly difficult to get much meaning out of the novel. The ideas, themes and style were captivating, but the characters, plot, lack of clarity and strong emotion, was utterly appalling. Perhaps it would be more correct to say that I was disappointed in myself for not being able to squeeze more out of it, as many others have been able to do so.
And so, I attempted reading parts of the book over, such as Billy's death and the night he was abducted by the Tralfamadorians, but I found myself becoming even more lost. One unanswered question led to another, and as my brain tried to make logic of the story, by sorting it in linear way, it became impossible to find exactly where something was in the book.
And so, I attempted reading parts of the book over, such as Billy's death and the night he was abducted by the Tralfamadorians, but I found myself becoming even more lost. One unanswered question led to another, and as my brain tried to make logic of the story, by sorting it in linear way, it became impossible to find exactly where something was in the book.
I think that Slaughter-House Five is so genius, that it cannot be constrained to, or is compatible with the physical pages of a book. It doesn't work the same way that three dimensional shapes try to interact with two dimensional ones. When I get the chance, I am determined to read the novel over again, and perhaps follow along with a time line, or some other graphic organizer.
Until then, Slaughter-House Five, you remained unconquered.
I wanted to end this post with a quote... but flipping through the book now, I can't find it. Darn.
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